Plan, purpose, forethought, investment, direction. Words within my OLW for 2012. I plan to live with INTENTION. To travel through my days with purpose and direction. I have a plan that relates to much more than just a "To Do" list of tasks. I want my "Daily INTENTION" list to be broader and more meaningful. I want to put things on this list like, check in with William to see how he is feeling about life. We can do that over a lunch-time meal, or emptying the dishwasher together. I just need to connect and find the answers all day long. Sure, I'll still need to do the laundry and run the errands this year but perhaps with a shift in my own engagement, I can see the deeper meaning behind such mundane tasks and respond to that with more meaningful engagement on my part. I will however use connecting with my children, REALLY REALLY engaging with them, as an excuse ANY DAY to not do the mundane and sometimes it will even trump the slightly more important stuff.
I loathe cooking. It's not even really the cooking part. It's the prep and clean-up that get me. I need to look at feeding my family as more than just putting a meal on a plate. I need to consider that this food that nourishes their bodies may be the best thing they eat all day. That the time we spend together around the table may be the most meaningful interaction that my boys have all day. They need that. All three of them. The INTENTION of the family meal is so much more than just meat and some sides on a plate. (Wonder how long that mind-set will last?) I think I'll need a plaque in my kitchen to remind me daily.
Living with INTENTION is going to take lots of work. I am going to need to better understand my own purpose and direction to keep my real INTENTION at the forefront and understood. I will need to weed out some things that don't fall within my new limits of focus. That may hurt a little. I won't be too drastic but I will be INTENTIONAL.
Nic and I are going to NY this year on a Theater/Art trip. The INTENTION of this trip was originally pure fun. I think that will shift. Nic and I are going to experience something together that no one else in the family has. We can find meaning in that beyond three Broadway shows and a couple of museums on very little sleep. The purpose/INTENTION of this excursion may be to connect Nic and I in a special way. To prepare him for HS knowing that his mama has got his back. That we can share and communicate on a level all our own. That we will always have NY in the summer...
I think that one reason I chose the word INTENTION is that when I made my long long list of possibilities I saw many areas of my life that deserved great attention this year. My HOME, my FAMILY, my LOVE. I think that INTENTION allows me to direct some personal energy toward all of those things and more. A monthly "date night" with my husband. An annual road-trip with my boys, or perhaps some planned ME time to create, or even to do NOTHING but sit in the quiet and listen to GOD.
I am going to take some time in the coming week to flesh out my plan a bit. In the meantime I can work on some reasonable decluttering that is usually inspired by a new year. Today I can clean out some drawers and cabinets in my kitchen. Maybe if I know and appreciate the tools that I use to prepare those meals for my family it won't be such a chore? I also hope to do some menu planning as a family and maybe just maybe even give the boys some directives on what they can do to help after dinner beyond putting dishes in the dishwasher. Perhaps this INTENTION stuff could wear off on everyone.
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